If you’ve ever had the desire to see a man cry, you really should’ve
been at my house a few days ago.

After years of trying to
secure an interview with Sir Tom Jones – yes, that’s right, the man
behind "It’s Not Unusual," "Sex Bomb," and a version of Prince’s
"Kiss" that, in its own way, transcends the original – I was finally
handed the opportunity on a silver platter. In preparation for the
release of his '60s variety show, "This is Tom Jones," on DVD by
Time-Life, I was to be granted a half-hour’s telephone time with
the man. I spent the day getting my questions ready and preparing
myself, so that I could have an actual conversation and not just
stammer myself silly. Therefore, when I finished a wonderful 30-minute
interview with Sir Tom, I was rapt with pride and ecstatic at the
thought of playing it back for my wife, who’s as big a fan as I am.
So I leaned down to rewind the tape…and found that, despite the fact
that the red light had been on to indicate that it was all powered
up, due to the tape being slightly out of line, not a single moment
of our conversation had been recorded.

Okay, I exaggerated a moment ago: I didn’t actually cry. I did,
however, manage to spit out a stream of f-bombs that put to shame
Hugh Grant’s character in "Four Weddings and a Funeral." (Just ask
my fellow editor, David Medsker, who was the recipient of my first
post-interview phone call.) At my mother-in-law’s urging, however,
I sat down with my original questions, wracked my brain, and was
able to come up with some pretty solid recollections of Tom’s responses.

Bullz-Eye: So I received the advance of the "This
Is Tom Jones" collection, and, well, being a fan, I guess
it goes without saying that I’m loving it. It’s the first
time I’ve ever seen any of these performances, but how long had it
been since you’d seen
these episodes?

Tom Jones: You know, I hadn’t seen any of them in
years since sitting down to put them together for this
set.

"Pretty much from 'It's Not
Unusual' on, they realized that the ladies were really
interested in what I was doing! What people too often forget,
though, is that men like what I'm doing as well; I had
to keep reminding them, 'You know, these women aren't coming to my
shows alone; they've got husbands and boyfriends who're coming along
with them!'"

BE: Did you have a hand in picking out which shows
would appear on the set?

TJ: Well, I did, in that I went through and I picked
out the ones with the people I liked the most, and then
I left it up to the powers that be and let them handle it as far as
making sure we could use them in the set.

BE: Do you happen to remember when someone first
came up and pitched the idea of you doing your own variety
show?

TJ: I do. I was 28 at the time, and they asked me
if I’d be interested in doing the show. And I’d done half-hour
shows already in England…in black and white, since it was before they
started doing them in color…but I wasn’t all that certain about the
idea of actually serving as a host. In fact, when it first started,
I really didn’t think that I could do it. But once I got going, I realized
that I could, of course, and I’m glad that I did.

BE: Not that you haven’t shown a gift for comedy
over the years, with "Mars Attacks" and your appearance
on "The Simpsons," but I was really impressed with your aptitude
in the first few episodes of your show. Had you done any acting prior
to the series?

TJ: Not acting, no, but I’d toured with a comedian
in the past, and I’d always loved comedy.

BE: It strikes me that you’re almost playing a character
when you’re on the show, playing up the ladies’ man aspect
of your persona in some of the between-song comedy moments.
Was that part of your reputation already pretty well in place by
then, or was it the show that served to cement it permanently?

TJ: No, that was pretty well in place by then. Pretty
much from "It’s Not Unusual" on, they realized that the
ladies were really interested in what I was doing! What people too
often forget, though, is that men like what I’m doing as well. I had
to keep reminding them, "You know, these women aren’t coming to my
shows alone. They’ve got husbands and boyfriends who’re coming along
with them!"

BE: You had some of the biggest names in entertainment
appear, from the worlds of both acting and music, but I
think some of my personal favorite moments are when you
team up with other musicians. How much say did you have in selecting
your musical guests?

TJ: Well, you know, the network was more interesting
in traveling the middle of the road, so that’s why we had
guests like Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé, or Barbara Eden, who was
doing "I Dream of Jeannie" at the time. But that was one of the things
I insisted on, that I be able to balance it out with artists like Janis
Joplin or Aretha Franklin. The network wasn’t really that pleased about
it, but that was something important to me. I wanted to be able to
have people on the show who I actually wanted to see perform, or to
sing with.

BE: So I’m guessing The Who were one of your picks,
then.

TJ: They were! Yeah, I had known The Who for awhile,
because they used to do package tours back then, and they’d
play the first half of the show, then I’d play the second. A lot us
all came up at about the same time, so we were playing together on
these types of tours. I played with the Rolling Stones; I played with
them at a club in London. I played with Van Morrison back when he was
with Them. So, you know, it wasn’t hard to get these people to do the
show, because I’d already known them. Like the Moody Blues. And because
of that, they knew what I was about, and what I could do. Like Janis
Joplin, she knew what kind of singer I was, and she looked forward
to singing with me. And I knew Graham Nash, from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young,
back when he was in the Hollies.

BE: That actually reminds me: I was kind of disappointed
to find that some of these episodes have had segments removed.
Like, in the one with that great performance with you and
Stevie Wonder, the Hollies originally had a song at the end, but
it’s not on the DVD. Was it just too cost-prohibitive to include
every single moment from every single episode?

TJ: Well, I think that was some of it. And, also,
I’ve got a rough cut of the DVD, and the one I’ve got has
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young performing, but then I got a note
saying that it won’t be on the final version because…I don’t know,
but I guess Neil Young wouldn’t sign off on it. He doesn’t ever want
to release anything that he’s ever done…but it’s not that he thinks
the performance is bad. He loves it, and, in fact, he wants to use
it on something that he’s putting out himself! So I’m thinking, well,
that’s a bit strange, and can’t we work something out? But I guess
not.

BE: You know, as far as some of the fashions you’re
wearing on the show…

TJ: Yeah, they’re something, aren’t they?

BE: I was actually wondering if, in some cases, the
events we’re seeing onscreen were the sum total of when
they were in fashion.

"I do have such different
audiences, and they're all ages. You've got the people
who're up front and want to dance, but behind them, you've
got the people in the expensive seats who just want to sit there
and enjoy the show. Basically, I feel like if you can be polite for
the first ¾ of show, all bets are off after that." TJ: (laughs) Yeah, they did look a little
ridiculous at times, particularly in the production numbers,
where the costume designer tried to put together outfits that matched
what was going on in the song.

BE: I have to say, the one you’re wearing during
your first songs with Aretha Franklin makes you look like
an extra from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture."

TJ: Well, see, there you go: we were ahead of our
time! Actually, if you go back and watch, in the concert
sequence, you see the blocks light up when I step on them. Years later,
they did that in "Saturday Night Fever." So, you see, we did that first.

BE: Was there anyone whose appearance on the show
led to long-term friendship?

TJ: (considers the question) Well, I had
met several of the people already who ended up on the show,
but, for instance, Jerry Lee Lewis was on the show, and I’d met him
before, but we stayed friends and kept in touch for many years afterwards.
The same with Little Richard, I’d known him as well.

BE: Do you know if the British release of the DVD
will contain a more Brit-centric line-up of episodes? Because
you had some shows with guests like, say, Sandie Shaw,
who was definitely more popular in the UK.

TJ: You know, I don’t know, but that’s a very good
question. But I do know that the episodes generally ran
the same here as they did in England, so they tried to use artists
who had at least some sort of profile here already. And music wasn’t
usually a problem, but there were some concerns about the British comedians
not doing well in America, though the other way 'round was never an
issue because the British have always loved American comedy.

BE: I know a duet between you and Van Morrison is
getting ready to be released as a single, but I wanted
to ask you about "Stoned in Love," with Chicane. That was
one of my favorite songs of 2006, but when I saw you perform it live,
I couldn’t help but think, "Damn, I want a version of this that’s
just by Tom!" I mean, I may have even liked it better without Chicane!

TJ: Yeah, thanks! The thing is, it generally comes
about because of people writing a song and thinking that,
"Hey, you know what, Tom Jones would sound good here." And the ones
who actually contact me to see if I’ll sing on it are sometimes surprised
when I like what I hear and I say, "Ok, yeah, I’ll do that." But, you
know, I enjoy doing that, getting the chance to work with different
artists. It’s always the most fun when you work with someone who’s
different, who’s a really unexpected pairing.

BE: Actually, this gives me a perfect opening for
a question I’d wanted to ask for a friend of mine: do you
happen to remember anything from your experience of recording
that cover of "Gimme Shelter" with the guys from New Model Army?

TJ: Actually, I was trying to come up with their
name a moment ago when I was talking about working with
someone unexpected! My son was my manager at the time, and he mentioned
to me the idea of working with them on this cover song, and that it
was for a charity project, and he said, "Yeah, there are these guys,
New Model Army, they’re a good band." And, of course, I was already
familiar with the original song by the Stones, so I said, "Yeah, I’ll
do it." And they were a great bunch of guys, and it was a good time.

BE: For proof as to how even a few years makes a
difference in how you’re perceived, when I told our Editor-in-Chief
about doing this interview, he said, "Tom Jones? When I
think of him, I totally think of Carlton on 'The Fresh
Prince of Bel-Air’!" Did that lower or change your demographic!

TJ: Yeah, it did! A lot of older black people knew
me already, because I’d been around in the '60s and they’d
seen my show, but the younger black audience really didn’t know anything
about me, so that was their first experience with me. But you’re right,
different aged people know me for different things. I also have a lot
of people who’ll come up to me and say, "You’re Tom Jones from 'Mars
Attacks’!" (laughs)

BE: My wife and I were both wondering how it feels
for you to have such decidedly different audiences between
here and the UK? I mean, we saw you over here a few months
ago, an old lady kicked my wife when she tried to dance in the aisle!
And, y’know, I just can’t imagine you could go to a Tom Jones concert
in the UK and even be allowed to not dance!

TJ: (laughs) Yeah, I know what you mean,
and it can sometimes be a problem, because you’re right, I
do have such different audiences, and they’re all ages.
You’ve got the people who’re up front and want to dance, but behind
them, you’ve got the people in the expensive seats who just want to
sit there and enjoy the show. Basically, I feel like if you can be
polite for the first three-fourths of a show, all bets are off after
that. I did a show in Cardiff, where I’m from (in Wales), and my nephews
went, and one of them witnessed a confrontation between the two kind
of crowds -- a younger fan who was trying to dance and the older woman
who’s wanting him to sit down, and you’ll have to excuse my French
here, but, finally, the younger guy just said, "Excuse me, grandma,
but would you please fuck off?" (laughs)

BE: Are you disappointed that your last few albums
haven’t been released in the States? I kept hearing rumors
that a more U.S.-centric version of Reload was in the cards,
but it never appeared.

TJ: I am, because it’s definitely a situation where
I’m playing to crowds who haven’t heard a lot of the new
material. Now, I still play a bit of it, anyway, because some of it,
like "Stoned in Love," stands on its own whether you’ve heard it before
or not. But, yeah, it’s definitely disappointing. And you’re right,
there was talk of doing a version for the U.S., and we were going to
get together with some American artists to record new songs and replace
some of the British artists who didn’t necessarily have major profiles
in the U.S., but it just never got off the ground. I don’t know if
it was V2 or what, but it just didn’t happen.

BE: I was really pleased with your blues album with
Jools Holland. It was also nice to be able to play it for
someone and say, "Ok, I know you just think of 'It’s Not
Unusual,’ but this is the real Tom Jones."

TJ: Oh, yeah, thanks, thanks a lot. And, yeah, that’s
another one that was really disappointing that it wasn’t
released in America.

BE: Given your pride in Wales, have you ever thought
about doing an album completely in Welsh? I know the lead
singer of Super Furry Animals took a stab at one a few years ago.

"I
had known The Who for awhile, because they used to do
package tours back then, and they'd play the first half
of the show, then I'd play the second. A lot us all came up at
about the same time, so we were playing together on these types
of tours. I played with the Rolling Stones; I played with them
at a club in London."

TJ: The problem with that is that while I know Welsh
I don’t really speak it, so I’d have to learn what I was
singing, and the effect would be lost. Many years ago, I had done a
song called "Not Responsible," and I was told that if I’d just record
an Italian version of the song, it’d be a massive hit in Italy! So
I did. But the problem came in the translation, because, you see, the
way they’d translated the lines, I was actually singing, "I am responsible!"
And after going through all that trouble to record a special
version, it was the original English version of the song that ended
up being the bigger hit, anyway!

BE: Last question: when you tried to get your female
fans to stop throwing their panties, did you really expect
that it was going to take?

TJ: No, not really. (laughs) My son and
daughter-in-law, they said, it lessens your impact as a
singer when you go out there with all the underwear, but,
you know, I never want to tell an audience what to do. That’s not what
a performer should ever do. So they still throw them, and I’m sure
they’ll always continue to throw them, but now I try to just leave
them on the stage. I don’t pick them up and wipe my brow with them
anymore. (cackles)